Why Christianity?

Why Christianity? There are many reasons to answer the question why Christianity. However, the short answer, because Christianity is a religion of high ideals. Jesus told us to turn the other cheek. That’s not easy! Muhammad told his believers to kill non – believers (Surah4: 88 & 89). Moses told his people to kill everybody they would find in the land (Deut. 7: 1 & 2). The land actually should reach from the Nile to the Euphrates (Gen. 15: 18)!

So why Christianity? But why would we need Religion at all? Your Religion is what makes you go, what motivates you. Modern day economics is a religion. It is based on negative moral values, greed, envy, competition and it makes no scientific sense! Why do we waste non – renewable resources of materials and energy to produce low quality products? The answer is to keep company profits up and to ensure employment. Why can’t we have durable high quality products? Because there would be unemployment.

Why can’t we give those unemployed the same as what they buy from their wages? After all it does not matter whether one uses one quality product for a long time or many low quality products to achieve a certain outcome. The labourers could receive the same goods and services, no matter whether they work or not. The answer is plainly greed and envy. That’s all. A peaceful together between people is not possible in modern economics. That’s one reason why Christianity.

So Christianity is special.

Loving Thy Neighbour is against current economic ideology. Further Christianity is also very different from Judaism and Islam. (I have not studied various other Religions sufficiently to come to a conclusion concerning those.) That is why Christianity! It appears that Judaism and Islam are cults. The word cult is part of the word culture. Those religions worship God in an attempt to entice Him to help them kill their enemies. If you think, all religions are the same and all religious people are good and won’t kill others, you’re wrong. After the September eleven attacks, the secretary of state Colin Powell made a statement on TV. He threw up his arms in despair to express his lack of understanding of such an act. He said, ‘Killing people is against all religions.’

That is not correct. Killing people is against Christianity. To kill non – believers is an integral part of the Qur’an and the Tanakh! In case of the Tanakh it is even killing people of other races! Are these good reasons for why Christianity?

Another false assumption is that Religious people don’t have or have only very little sex.

[1] Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh [but] in vain. [2] [It is] vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: [for] so he giveth his beloved sleep. [3] Lo, children [are] an heritage of the LORD: [and] the fruit of the womb [is his] reward. [4] As arrows [are] in the hand of a mighty man; so [are] children of the youth. [5] Happy [is] the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.

What a nice Psalm!

To understand the first verse properly you must realise that the house stands for a family. The house of David are his descendants. House does not stand for four walls and a roof!

Everything is in God’s hands! Don’t rise early and stay up late, worrying about things. God gives to his beloved sleep! Now in winter time night lasts for about fourteen hours in Israel. Who would sleep that long?

Well, they didn’t have electric light. Without light would they have lain in bed and watched TV? What would they have done in bed? Well, the consequence of sleep is ‘an heritage of the LORD’. The fruit of the womb is God’s reward for those who trust in him and lay in bed!

How are children a reward? Aren’t they a burden? No, not in those days. Children meant available labour. Also they meant military strength! As arrows [are] in the hand of a mighty man; so [are] children of the youth! They shall speak with the enemies in the gate!

So when we look at an orthodox Jew, we might think he looks a bit like a Catholic Monk. Therefore he would turn the other cheek and he won’t have sex. Nothing could be further from the truth! In Israel he might even have more than one wife. And he always would ensure all his wives are pregnant at all times. In this manner he would provide ‘arrows’ for the eternal struggle with the Palestinians. Did you know that in Hebrew and Arabic Palestinians are called Philistini?!

Therefore, there will never be peace in the Middle East, unless these nations turn to Christianity first! Their holy scriptures command them to kill each other! Is that a good reason why Christianity?

What about sex in the Qur’an?

The reward for the righteous (Muslims) is ‘success, gardens and grapevines and splendid, female companions’ (Surah78: 31 to 33). ‘Companions is apparently not the correct translation. The Arabic word only occurs once in the whole Qur’an. The word companion occurs many times in translations. Other people who translated the Qur’an with good intent rendered, ‘Full-breasted [companions],’ ‘voluptuous women,’ ‘maidens with pear-shaped breasts,’ ‘young full breasted (mature) maidens,’ and ‘maidens with swelling breasts.’ A German translation rendered ‘virgins’.

Furthermore,

Surah2: 222:, ‘And they ask you about menstruation. Say, It [is] harm (illness), so keep away [from] women during menstruation. And [do] not approach them until they are cleansed. And when they are purified, then come to them from where Allah has ordained for you. Indeed, Allah loves those who return and loves those who purify themselves. [223] Your women are a field for you, so come [to] your field how you wish and put forth [good deeds] for yourselves. And fear Allah and know that you [will] meet Him. And give glad tidings to the believers.’

Obviously translators insert some words into the translation. Some of these insertions make the text more readable in modern English, others interpret it. However, it is quite clear that there is no restriction on sex. Some translators render wives instead of women, but the text says women. It does not explicitly say that many children give military strength. Instead it just says ‘put forth for yourselves’. It does not say good deeds. That insertion obviously does not fit the context. Muhammad and his people still thought that the ejaculation from the penis is an early form of the complete child. (See ‘The Original Sin’ in Greetings from Paradise). In other words, multiply yourself. You might live on in your sons.

The second last sentence

says, that you will meet Allah in the sex act! The chapter ‘Ecstasy’ in Greetings from Paradise explains how the Ancients used sex to conjure up the presence of God! Here is what Rabbi Schneerson (1902 – 1994) wrote about sex in ‘Toward a Meaningful Life’ (p. 69) under the heading ‘Why is Sexuality so Powerful?’: ‘Intimacy is also the only experience in life that allows us to become truly G-dlike, in that it empowers husband and wife to create. Nothing else we do as human beings is as G-dlike as creating a new life, which in turn can create other lives, on and on, into eternity. This G-dly nature is what gives sexuality its mystique, it is the one opportunity man has to taste G-d – to think as He thinks, to create as He creates.’ You will meet Allah in the sex act!

Sex is divine!!! Creating new life is divine to Jews and Muslims!!! Don’t hold back.

The last sentence from the above Qur’an quote is very remarkable. ‘Give glad tidings to the believers!’ Does this mean Muslims are encouraged to brag about their sexuality?

In both, Judaism and Islam, sexuality is encouraged!

What about Christianity?

Why Christianity? Why do Christians frown upon sexuality? And, by the way, modern Western society frowns upon sexuality, even very ‘modern’ people do! Modern Western society is based on Christian values! In regard to sex we overdo this.

Some quote 1. Cor. 7 in response to that. Many also point out Matt. 5: 27 to 32. I have discussed the meaning of the word adultery in a chapter in Greetings from Paradise. The Hebrew and Greek words refer to heathen cults in which the worshippers had sex with temple servants. The Greek word for ‘fornication, ‘porneia’ denotes a festival of sex in honour of Aphrodite Pornae. The Ancient Greeks worshipped Aphrodite as the goddess of Love, physical love. Her most famous temple at Paul’s time was in Corinth. Therefore Paul addressed that cult in his letter to the Corinthians. The offence in the above cases was the worship of anther god, not sex! I have explained this in the chapters on ‘The Letters’ and ‘Everlasting Life’ in Greetings from Paradise.

There is a reason for celibacy in 1. Cor. 7: 32 & 33. It is, ‘But I would have you without carefulness. He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord:But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please [his] woman.’ (The Ancient Greek words for husband and wife do not occur in the New Testament!)

Paul wrote this at a time of prosecution against Christians.

How could somebody become a martyr, if he would leave a wife and dependent children in misery? There are indications that early Christian society kept their women in common. They brought up their children together. So if a man would die, there would be no effect on his children. Death in those days was quite common since there was no modern medical care.

Acts 4: 32 says, ‘And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any [of them] that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.’

King James translated Titus 2: 4 in the following way. ‘That they (old women) may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children.’ The Greek text, however says, ‘That they may sober up the young men – lovers to be children – lovers!’ Also Even the Apostles had sex! The Bible outright says so!

Later, once the Roman Empire turned Christian in 380 AD, there was no need for Martyrs. 1. Cor. 7: 32 & 33 did not really apply anymore, because there was no prosecution. Some priests were formally married, others just had children with their housekeepers. They had sex. Pope Silverius (536 to 537) was the son of Pope Hormisdas (514 to 523). There were several other married popes who had children, two of them after the Gregorian Reforms.

The Gregorian Reforms (1050 to 1080)

attempted to enforce celibacy amongst Clergy. Why at that time?

To understand that we must first understand how the authorities, in this case the Church, spoke to the people. Sigmund Freud asked in his book ‘Moses and Monotheism’ a very odious question. ‘What is wrong with incest? Are we not meant to love our family?’

There is a scientific reason against it, but is there a moral reason? There are commandments against it in Lev. 18. The core of the chapter is verse 6, ‘None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover [their] nakedness: I [am] the LORD.’ It is well worth reading the whole chapter to see everything that was forbidden. What if the law would have been, you are only allowed to have sex with your married spouse. Then this whole chapter would have been superfluous! The Israelites had sex with many! But close kin was forbidden! Why?

Well, they must have noticed over time that people who practice incest get misfigured children or have still births. They had no idea about the laws of inheritance. Therefore they would have seen this as God’s punishment for this practice. There was no difference between moral and scientific reasoning at the time.

In a similar way

Pope Gregory might have pursued a secular objective through celibacy. Obviously sex is very important. Without sex Christians would have died out! Why would Pope Gregory have attempted to enforce celibacy?

On November 27, 1095, just fifteen years after the Gregorian Reforms, Pope UrbanII called for the First Crusade. Apparently he held a very inciting speech at the Church Council at Clermont. There are several very different records of what he actually said. Robert the Monk (1047 to 1122) wrote one of these. This is part of it,

‘This land which you inhabit, shut in on all sides by the seas and surrounded by the mountain peaks, is too narrow for your large population; nor does it abound in wealth; and it furnishes scarcely food enough for its cultivators. Hence it is that you murder one another, that you wage war, and that frequently you perish by mutual wounds. Let therefore hatred depart from among you, let your quarrels end, let wars cease, and let all dissensions and controversies slumber.’

Even if the Pope had not said these words, these must have been common thoughts at the time. Otherwise Robert would not have reported this. Could it be that Pope Gregory, just fifteen years earlier, had introduced celibacy as a means of birth control? Was celibacy a means of peace? Is this another good reason for why Christianity?

Now what about the crusades?

The crusades were a breach of Christian law. However, they were not a breach of the law of the Qur’an! Surah 61: 4, ‘Indeed, Allah loves those who fight in his way ….’ Actually, most translators have rendered, ‘in his cause!’ Not in his way. However, the reminder of the verse says, ‘[in] a row, as if they [were] a structure joined firmly.’ It seems, that Muhammad was instructing the believers to fight in close formation. Maybe then Allah would show his love by making them survive and conquer their enemies.

Either way, Allah loves those who fight in his way or cause. Particularly, if the meaning is ‘cause’, as most translators put it, then the crusades should attract God’s love! If Muslims claim that Allah loves them for fighting, then they should grant the same right to others. They don’t, because Surah4: 88 & 89 instruct them to kill non – believers. No tolerance against other Religions! Tolerance is Christian. Another reason for why Christianity.

But why did the Pope call for the Crusade? Here is a map of the Roman Empire around 380 AD. This was the time when Emperor Theodosius I made Christianity the State Religion of the Roman Empire.

Since then, all of Northern Africa and even the Southern half of Spain had been conquered by Muslims. Since it is against good etiquette to say with the sword, I say with the sabre. But certainly they did it by military means. As a matter of fact, when Muslims are amongst themselves, they brag about their military successes. They take them as evidence that their way of worship is the correct one.

These are very important reasons Why Christianity!

All of the Roman Empire had been converted to Christianity. The only place which had ever been converted to Islam is Medina.

So when Muslims reproach us for the crusades a thousand years ago, they are reproaching us for breaching Christian Law. When we reproach Muslims for today’s terror attacks, we are reproaching them for keeping the law of the Qur’an! Is this a good reason for why Christianity?

Human Rights do not exist! Christians grant Human Rights! Look at how the wealthy country Qatar treated the labourers from India and Nepal. Qatar had invited them to build the soccer stadia. The government took their passports and they were kept in conditions that quite a number of them died! That is how Muslims treat foreigners! Is this another reason for why Christianity?

So how should we act?

1. Cor. 10: 32, ‘Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God!’

Nevertheless, there is a difference between tolerance and negligence. We can only tolerate something that we have studied! When we speak of Religious Tolerance we usually are negligent. We argue, Religion doesn’t matter anyway. The world was not created in six days, therefore don’t worry about it.

That is negligent! Religion is what drives every one of us.

So how should we act? Why do Muslims go to Christian countries when they flee from war? Why don’t they go to a rich oil exporting Muslim nation? Well, to start with the rich Middle – Eastern Muslim countries are not even signatories to the United Nations Refugee Convention! They only take migrants on work visas. They only take migrants that are useful to them. Human Rights are granted by Christians!

So refugees with Muslim background flee to Christian countries. Is it too much to ask them to convert to Christianity? Is it too much to ask them to bring up their children in the Christian faith? After all they are fleeing from true Islam! The Qur’an commands to kill non – believers. Now there are even sects within Islam that count other sects or mainstream or ‘secular’ Muslims non – believers. Is this a good reason for why Christianity?

But aren’t we meant to be tolerant?

Yes, but what is tolerance? Should we tolerate this, ‘Never make a contract with a Capitalist! You must put them all to death. Do not show them any mercy! Do not marry such people, because as soon as you get your fingers on the dough, you will be corrupted and your heart will turn away from the principles of social justice!’

Tolerance does not mean giving up on our ideals. And it does mean that in every way. There are people like Pat Robertson who openly called for the assassination of Hugo Chavez! That is not Christian!

We have to realise that the old folks might not change their ways. I recall an incident when our oldest son was just a baby. We used to go every night for a walk through a park next to a busy street. One night there was an elderly Muslim coming across the road. He then kneeled down towards the sun and spread out his arms. We could see in his face that this was a deep religious experience for him. We actually considered to walk through behind him, but we did not want to take the baby onto the busy road.

Just on the edge of the road behind this man were, I assume, his two sons. They went through the same motions as their father. However, they did not look at the sun, they were looking at us. Their faces were saying, ‘These people must be thinking we are idiots, kneeling down in the middle of the park.’ Maybe they even wondered, why Christianity. Shouldn’t we open our doors to them?

We may well tolerate

the old man to continue in his ways. However, we certainly should attempt to convert the young to our non – violent Religion. The old man has to realise that he has migrated to get into a better situation. This situation is different from the situation from where he came. That’s why he came! He should be glad if his sons try to adapt to the new situation. This should be encouraged.

Most Muslims would never have read the Qur’an, just like most Christians never read the Bible. We should point out to these Muslims Surah4: 88 & 89, ‘What is [the matter] with you [that you are] two groups concerning the hypocrites, while Allah has made them fall back [into error and disbelief] for what they earned. Do you wish to guide those whom Allah has sent astray? And he whom Allah sends astray – never will you find for him a way [of guidance].They wish you would disbelieve as they disbelieved so you would be alike. So do not take from among them allies until they emigrate for the cause of Allah. But if they turn away, then seize them and kill them wherever you find them and take not from among them any ally or helper.’

How to treat women: Surah4: 34, ‘And those (women) (from) whom you fear their ill-conduct then advise them, and forsake them in the bed, and finally strike them!

So why Christianity?

Christianity is a Religion of high ideals. It is not easy to turn the other cheek. It is something to strive for. Christians always are chasing an ideal. The above Qur’an verses on the other hand command the believer to kill non – believers. Some might say, most Muslims don’t do that. True, so Christians are never quite coming up to the ideals of Jesus. Most Muslims however, are better than the Qur’an! Another reason for why Christianity.

Surah48: 29, ‘Muhammad (is the) messenger of Allah, and those who (are) with him (are) hard against the disbelievers and merciful among themselves.’ To give a reason for why Christianity, Jesus might have answered (Luke 6: 31 to 38), ‘And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again.

But love ye your enemies

and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.’

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